A few weeks ago, we took her to her first live "theatre" production: Elmo Live. Sesame Street is still one of Isabella's favorite shows (we're contemplating a twin-free visit to Sesame Place this summer as her birthday gift), and while last year she seemed a bit too young for the live show (or rather, we didn't want to shell out the bucks for a ticket for an antsy two-year-old), three-and-a-half seemed like the perfect age to take her. She had a complete blast, and when told she could pick out one souvenir (read: piece of overpriced plastic crap), she chose binoculars, which honestly, were overpriced at $12, but considering she played with them non-stop for two days, and continues to play with them often, were worth the money.

Ready for Elmo!

The territory wars over toys continue. Now that the twins are free from Baby Jail, Isabella's secure play area is compromised. We need to come up with some way for her to be able to use her crayons and coloring books and toys with small pieces in a space where the babies cannot access them, but we're not there yet. And, understandably, she is not happy that they're into her things. I can't say I blame her.

One of my favorite things she's started saying over the last month or two relates to her "growing up." She's always asking me to look at how long her legs are getting, or how tall she is growing, and of course, I admire her length and width accordingly. But most amusing about these conversations is the fact that she always ends them with something like this:

"Mommy, when I get bigger, you can stay in bed ALL MORNING LONG. I will get the babies up, make them their breakfast, get them dressed, and play with them for you."She's also fond of telling me that when she's older, she'll drive the car for me so I don't have to drive.

Off to "Pajama Day" at preschool.

She's begun sounding out words all on her own, and telling me, for example, "Q-Q-Quack begins with "Q!" And she adores books, still, which makes me so happy. We've been making a lot of trips to the library lately, and current favorites include Curious George, Kipper, anything to do with dinosaurs, and of course, the Berenstain Bears. I am trying to make it a priority to read to her more often throughout the day (we always do at least two books before bed), but with the babies, it is so hard because everyone wants to be in my lap.

And speaking of bed, the other night Isabella went from sleeping in this bed...

...to this one! Earlier this week, we bought her a full-sized mattress and converted her toddler bed into a "big-girl bed." Isabella does not deal well with change. For example, she is madly attached to the quilt on her bed, and even though my mom (despite my advice not to) bought her an expensive and very soft blanket for her bed almost a year ago, Isabella has not slept a single night underneath it, and it remains folded in her closest for her sister or brother to use. We feared the worst with the switch-over to the "real" bed, but after some complaints of "I don't like this bed!", she's slept in it without a problem and loves it.

And yes, that is duct-tape I have on her shades to keep out the light. I have still not found any curtains I like for her red-and-white room. All the curtains suitable for little girl rooms are pink and purple. Grrrr....

Isabella looked so big sleeping in her toddler bed. But in this gigantic full-sized bed, she looks so small.

This month has not been without its struggles. It seems that Miss Isabella has a wee bit of difficulty telling the truth, even when caught red-handed in a lie. She's taken toys from the babies, causing them to scream, and even though I know she's done it, she will say that no, she hasn't, and the offended baby is "screaming for no reason." She will sneak snacks from the babies' bowls, which they do not tolerate at all, and when I ask her if she's taken food from them, she will say no, even when her hands are full of their snack.

We have talked to her about lying, and the importance of always telling us the truth, but this is a very abstract concept for a three-year-old to grasp. I'm hoping my Mini Nixon grows out of this phase fast.

Meanwhile, I am hard at work planning her summer schedule of camps, classes, and activities. I want to keep her moderately busy this summer for several reasons. First, I want her to have plenty of time to play outdoors with her friends, and it is very, very difficult for me to take her and her brother and sister outdoors (backyard, playground, etc.) all on my own. The twins are often two steps away from hurling their bodies into traffic, and I feel like Isabella gets the short end of the stick, because she enjoys outdoor play so much, and we just cannot stay out long. Second, I want her to stay in the rhythm of being dropped off places on her own once preschool is out for the summer. I don't want her to have separation anxiety in the fall when she will attend preschool four afternoons a week, because she's been home with me all summer long.

So far, she's attending a two-week camp at her preschool (water play, crafts, etc., all outside), she'll have two weeks of (comped-yay!) swim lessons at the health club, she's going to a three-day "Adventure Kids" camp through my town's recreation program, and finally, a "Royalty Camp" at her friend's preschool. And this one? I have slight misgivings about. I read her the descriptions of three camps her friend is doing, and she chose this one, which is gender-neutral, but includes dress-up, making a coat of arms, and enjoying a feast in a "royal hall." I will admit I have "princess issues," which may be a topic for another post. But I am very interested to see how my "not-a-girly-girl" does in this camp.

Current Likes: Somersaults, a super-annoying Dora CD, and pointing out her "freckles" (beauty marks)

I have to agree Princesses can be pretty gender neutral. Check out Princesses Wear Hiking Boots and A Princess, A Pirate and One Wild Brother. I especially love that one. The Paper Bag Princess is great too. There are a lot of good princess stories that aren't all the princess just waiting for the prince to rescue her.

Quick Snapshot:

34-year-old writer andmother to a daughterborn in August 2006 followingIVF and girl/boy twins born in October 2008 following FET. Come along as I document the search for my lost intellect. It's a bumpy ride. Consider yourself warned.